Sean Payton agrees to contract extension with New Orleans Saints

The New Orleans Saints have reportedly reached an agreement on an extension with head coach Sean Payton.

After back to back losing seasons for the first time during his ten-year tenure coaching the New Orleans Saints, there was talk that Sean Payton’s days with the team might be numbered. There was the possibility floated about that he could even be traded with teams like the Miami Dolphins, who were looking for a new head coach.

As it turns out, not only will Sean Payton be staying in the Big Easy and coaching the New Orleans Saints in 2016, but he will be staying put for a while and getting a pay raise in the process:

Payton became the head coach of the New Orleans Saints before the start of the 2016 season, reaching the NFC Championship Game in his first season while the team served as a catalyst for the city’s rebuilding following Hurricane Katrina. The highlight of his coaching career came three seasons later, when the Saints upset the Indianapolis Colts in Super Bowl XLIV for the first championship in franchise history.

Payton was suspended for the entire 2012 season for his role in the infamous “Bountygate” scandal involving players being paid for what many considered dirty play on the field. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said Payton and other coaches lied about the bounties, saying they did not take place. During his time away from the Saints, Payton coached his son’s middle school team near the family home in Texas.

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